The snow flew about in the air, stinging my frozen coat with every touch of icy flake as the wind that carried it howled in my ears, drowning out any other noise that might have existed in the landscape. Frost had begun to encrust my eyelids, weighing them down and sending a constant chill through my body that made me even more cold. I pulled my mostly soaked and frozen blanket around me even tighter, trying to keep in even the tiniest bit of warmth. It was not the winter coat that I needed, but every bit of warmth helped. My feathered wings were free of ice and snow under the cloak, but to fly in this weather was not safe at all. Besides, they would freeze up in an instant if exposed to this. I continued moving forward, feeling the ice crunch under each hoof as it sent a shock of pain that was becoming all too familiar with every step. I was moving forwards to somewhere, but I had lost all sense of direction.
Ahead of me was complete white, just as it was behind me. The only movement I could see was the constantly swirling flakes, dodging in and out of my field of vision in complex patterns guided by the wind. I could make out the dim shapes of apple trees on either side of me, barely five feet away but almost invisible. They too were showing the beginnings of ice damage, especially as they seemed to be rather short. Seeing the apple trees reminded me of my mission and I nervously fondled the package under my blanket with a wing, making sure that my present was still there. I had come this far and there was no point in me turning back until I had reached my destination.
I kept walking, the movement providing the sole warmth that I had as my muscles worked to keep going. But my eyelids kept dropping, hesitating longer and longer after each heavy blink. My legs grew tired, weakened by having to trudge through the snow; they weren't very strong to begin with, and that made my experience all the worse. If I didn't reach my goal soon, I wasn’t sure what would happen to me, but it was certainly nothing good.
Finally, I saw the dim shape of a light in the distance as it gradually got brighter, gently swinging as if held in a pony’s mouth. It shone like a beacon through the blizzard, a lighthouse to a lost pony like me. I opened my mouth to call out to it, but all that came was a weak croak. Closing my mouth, swallowing, and clearing my throat, I opened it to try again. Unfortunately for me, I did so only to trip over a rock or something underneath the snow. I fell into the powdery precipitation, the icy wetness managing to pervade me at last, soaking my belly and wings.
I tried to pull myself to my hooves, but the strength to do so had fled from my limbs. Collapsing again, I gazed at the soft yellow light in the distance, a familiar silhouette visible behind it. It was so close, yet I was powerless to do anything to reach it. I couldn’t even yell for help; my soft voice wouldn’t reach over the howling winds as weak as it was. I curled up in a ball, snow crunching between my limbs as I tried to preserve the slightest bit of warmth my body could still provide me. Snow found its way into my mouth, chilling even that with its icy touch, providing only a tiny bit of sweetness in compensation.
I was so terribly cold.
My eyes finally shut, heavily burdened and with no reason to continue staring off into the whiteness. The black was welcome as a change from the white with its mocking lantern. My body was racked with shivers, teeth chattering as I lay helpless to do anything about it. I hated being helpless, rendered weak by the never-ending blizzard. But the cold was something I was powerless to fight against.
I don’t know how long I lay there, but I began to drift off to sleep. It was rather nice, as the cold began to fade away. My trip to sleep was halted though, as a voice rang through the ice-induced haze. The voice called something, my name. It even sounded familiar, so I tried to open my eyes to see what it was. They had become too ice-encrusted for me to do so, and I gave up on trying to do so.
Cold was all I knew.
***
I set the lantern on the ground and rolled the last of the tarps off my back. I had to finish wrapping up the saplings before the howling blizzard caused them to frost too badly and die. I had already finished most of them, with just a few left on this row to wrap. It would have been easier if the pegasi had seen the storm coming ahead of time, but it had blown in from the Everfree if Dash was to be believed.
I was about to unroll another tarp and get to work on the tiring task of wrapping a tree when I heard what sounded like a choked cry a little ways away. I turned and looked, but failed to see anything that could have produced the sound. I shrugged, guessing that it was just a strange sound the wind had made, and started to work at covering the fragile leaves. The snow pelted my skin and caused me to be a little cold, but my muscles both insulated me and warmed me as I worked.
I went to start on the next tree down when I caught sight of a patch of dark green amongst the white snow. It was only a bit covered, so it hadn’t been there long. While green was a common color in the orchard, it didn't seem to be a blown over tree; this part didn't have a tree with enough leaves to look like that anyways. What really confused me was how it sifted and billowed in the wind, acting more like fabric than anything else. It stayed in one place though, obviously anchored down by something. I picked up the lantern in my mouth and moved closer, thinking that it was one of the tarps that had blown away.
I finally came close enough to see a bit of pink hair attached to a yellow and rather familiar face partially covered with snow. My eyes shot open and I dropped the lantern where I stood, dashing over.
“Fluttershy!” I cried, immediately recognizing my friend.
The mare didn’t respond other than to shiver a bit more. I scooped my hooves under her, panicking slightly at how cold and wet her coat was, even feeling where bits of ice had frozen. She was absolutely freezing, almost as cold as the snow itself. I hoisted her onto my back much as I had lifted the tarps there. I breathed a sigh of relief when I felt her bury her head into my mane and neck as well as cling to my stomach with her hooves. There was a slight tugging against my mane, but I didn't mind because of what it meant.
“Hang on Fluttershy, we’ll get ya someplace warm real quick. Just hang tight, okay?” I started walking at a brisk pace, not wanting her to fall off. As she continued to grip tighter, only budging a little bit, I broke out into a run, angling to head directly to the farm. I cut through the trees, able to know exactly where things that I needed to dodge were. It may have been whiteout, but I could navigate my farm blindfolded.
It had been only a minute or two before the shape of Sweet Apple Acres came into sight. I didn’t pause at seeing it though, instead charging down the hill and almost flying into the house. The door was still opening and closing on its hinges when I slide the still frozen mare off my back. Gently, I placed her onto the rug in our front room before turning my attention to the fire.
I heard her let out a soft moan of frustration for some reason, but I ignored it for now. I had let the fire die down to embers while I was gone, enough to stave off the cold from the house, but not so much that it would be dangerous. I didn't exactly want to burn down the house by accident; Granny Smith was already asleep under her covers, Big Mac was out with Cheerilee, and Apple Bloom was staying at Twilight’s with the rest of the Crusaders for the night. Now, it was more important to get the fire going as hot as was safe to combat the chill that had frozen my friend.
The Yule log in the fireplace was still burning like I left it, but there were just embers aside from that and no other logs in the fireplace. I piled in a few more logs and added a little lighter fluid for good measure, relaxing slightly as I felt the heat wash over my body from the revived flames. I turned and headed to the kitchen, leaving Fluttershy to bathe in the new warmth. Judging by the small, cute sounds of happiness she was making, it felt quite nice to her.
Grabbing a thermos of hot chocolate Granny had made before bed and two mugs, I headed back and laid on the floor next to my friend. She had scooted a little closer to the fire, another good sign. Now that she was slowly getting warm and out of danger, I removed the soaked cloak she had been wearing and tossed it aside on the couch.
Underneath it, I saw that her wings had largely avoided the ice, but were no dryer than everywhere else. Looking at her face, I saw that her eyes were still encrusted with ice, no doubt preventing her from opening them. It was melting and running down her cheeks, giving the slight impression of crying. I reached up two hooves and gently wiped the last bit of ice away, my hooves lingering on her calescent cheeks.
***
I felt a pair of warm hooves gently set themselves on my eyelids and get rid of the last bit of ice preventing me from seeing. I opened my eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the light change. Gone was the white for miles; instead, a smiling, orange earth pony with a slightly crooked familiar cowpony hat atop her head met my vision. It was a much more pleasant view, and one that sparked my internal fire back to life.
I lifted a hoof and tilted the hat back so it sat better on her head. We both smiled, a slight giggle escaping my lips. I opened my mouth to thank her for bringing me out of the cold, but I was interrupted by my body letting out a rather large shiver despite the roaring fire.
Applejack’s eyes shot open in remembrance and she turned behind her grabbing a thermos and a two mugs. She carefully poured out some hot chocolate—marshmallows included— and placed it down in front of me. I accepted it thankfully, enjoying the warmth of the mug on my chilled hooves. It stopped my shivering at least a tiny bit, but smelled even more amazing, seeming to warm all of me at once. It was a breath of fresh air after the wintery landscape I had just came from.
I took a small sip of the beverage, the hot drink sliding down my throat and soothing me from the inside out. I could feel it go down my throat, warming me more as each second passed. It had a creamier taste than what I was used to, but I didn't mind very much. It had a dash of cinnamon added as well, meaning that it was probably made from scratch. I’d have to ask for the recipe from her eventually. I gradually took another sip and another, the amount increasing with each sip as I warmed myself with the rich, chocolaty beverage. I eventually put my lips to the mug again, only to find that I was out of the drink.
My eyebrows shot up and I looked over at where Applejack was sitting with a slightly amused expression. “Oh, I’m so sorry I drank all of the hot chocolate! It’ll be no problem for me to make more.” Without a second thought, I started to get up, but was stopped by a hoof on my shoulder.
“Sit down 'Shy, it’s no problem. I’ve got a whole thermos full right here and ya just about froze ta death out there.”
“Well, if it’s all right with you…” I settled back down, my body shaking from the cold once again. The hot chocolate had helped for a little bit, but it wasn’t enough to totally get rid of the chill. I glanced over at Applejack and her warm hooves, remembering how warm they felt against my body when she carried me back here.
“Of course it's'alright with me! Here, I'll even get ya another mug.” She lifted the thermos again and poured out another cup, just as hot as the last. I almost wanted to refuse, but I couldn’t resist the sweet flavor of the hot chocolate.
Just as I was about to take another sip, Applejack planted a hoof in her face and groaned. “Ugh, I’m a fool. I didn’t even get ya a blanket.”
She started to get up, but I hesitantly reached a hoof over to her and caused her to pause. “You don’t need to go find a blanket.” She gave me a curious look, but waited to see what I would say next. “Well, whenever my animals get lost in the cold and I go find them, the fastest way to warm them up is, um, sharing body heat.”
I closed my eyes hard and hoped that she wouldn’t get mad at me, but reopened them after a few seconds of silence to see that she had moved closer. I thought I could make out a little bit of red on her cheeks, but it was probably from the exertion it took to bring me here. “You know what’s best Flutters. I can’t exactly hug a tree or an apple to keep it warm. 'Sides, why would you want a hot apple?”
I laughed a little at that, a light laugh that showed I was more recovered from the cold than I thought. Even so, she pressed her left side up next to mine in lovely, blissful warmth. If I turned my head a little to the right, I'd almost certainly bump her in the nose. The space between our flanks quickly grew hot, erasing any thoughts I had of the outside’s chill, but I didn’t mind. There was just something about being close to Applejack that sent my heart a flutter and a feeling of happiness through my body, expelling any cold that tried to stay. Even the Yule fire, built by her hooves, didn't come close to this.
We stayed that way for what seemed like only a few minutes, but I knew it was much longer. If it had only been a few minutes, my head wouldn’t have slipped down to be resting on the back of her neck and my wing wouldn’t have somehow made its way out of the gap between us to stretch across her back while the other one hung loosely at my side, drying off in the heat of the fire. It was a position that an outside viewer would wonder how it was comfortable, but comfort didn’t matter to me much right now. The need for comfort had been replaced by the need for heat and the need for heat had been replaced with want of the heat to continue its wonderful feeling. Any last traces of the blizzard had vanished from my limbs to be replaced by the sweet, tender warmth that can only be obtained with a few special ponies.
My eyes sleepily wandered about the room, looking over the neatly kept living room with its ancient rocking chair, worn quilts passed down for generations, the fireplace that was keeping us nice and toasty, and the battered couch that had a dark green cloak draped over it. It even had a butterfly embroided on it, just like my cutie mark. Wait, wasn’t that my green cloak? And there was something important in there! The thought snapped me out of my sleepy daze just as it snapped my head up, brushing Applejack’s in the process.
I felt the connection of her head against mine and made me gasp. “Oh Applejack, I’m so sorry! Are you alright?”
I thought I could see a smile on her freckled face. That was good, right? “Fluttershy, that was barely a tap. I've had worse tussles with Applebloom. Now what had ya shoot up like a gopher all of a sudden?”
“Are you sure you’re all right?” She gave me a look that made me lower my head and bring a little bit of heat to my cheeks. “Oh, okay. Well, the reason I was coming out here to see you in the first place was because I brought you a Hearth’s Warming Present!” The slight embarrassment was replaced with the giddiness I got whenever I was about to make someone happy.
Applejack gave a little sigh, but smiled anyways. “’Shy, ya didn’t have ta do that. We were all gonna meet up tomorrow at Twilight's an' exchange gifts anyways.”
“Oh I know. But I already went by and gave the rest of the girls their presents and it wouldn’t have been fair if you didn’t get yours today as well.” I gave a little smile, fondly remembering the various reactions of my friends upon receiving their gifts. Pinkie had of course been the happiest, but everypony else liked theirs almost as much.
She gave me another smile, almost as if she was laughing a little. “Well if ya came all this way, I won’t stop ya from giving me my present now. It'd be a shame if you had forgotten 'bout it.”
I let out a little happy noise of excitement and left my friend’s side, though I was only gone for long enough to grab the package from a pocket under the cloak and come back to lay exactly where I was; same warm spot on the carpet, same even warmer spot next to Applejack.
I dropped the carefully wrapped present in front of her. The red and green striped wrapping paper had gotten a little wet on my journey here, but that wasn’t much of an issue. “Here you go!”
She looked at the long, limp, rectangular package in front of her and stared at it carefully, almost like she was trying to see through its outer covering.
“Hmm, it’s gotta be clothes by the way it fell,” she muttered. Turning her head to look at me, she gently bumped my forehead with her hat. “Is it a sweater?”
I raised a slight eyebrow at her guess, curious as to why she did so instead of opening it, but I shook my head. “No, it’s not a sweater.” I gasped suddenly realizing why she asked. “Did you want one? I can go make you one if you want.” Oh, I hope I didn’t get her the wrong thing.
“What? Oh, no. My fam’ly just plays a game every Hearth’s Warming where we try ta guess what the present is 'fore opening it.”
“Oh. That makes sense.”
“That bein’ said, is it a pair of socks?”
I blushed and shook my head. Socks were usually what special someponies got each other because they were handmade and personalized. Although, I suppose I could make some for all my friends next year. They were pretty special to me.
My train of thought was interrupted by her third guess, though I didn’t really mind. “Is it a scarf?”
My face lit up in a smile, as did hers. “You got it!” She smiled, then carefully tore into the package with her teeth and hooves. While she wasn’t eager to preserve the wrapping paper like Rarity, had, she certainly didn’t tear into it and fling paper everywhere like Dash. Twilight wasn't much better.
A few seconds later and the package was laid bare to expose the wool scarf. “Do you like it? I hoof-knitted it with the wool that my sheep had shed. I tried really hard to get the colors right, and I think it turned out okay.”
Applejack held up the thick scarf between her hooves, looking at its dark green background and pattern of neatly stitched apples the same color as those in her orchard and on her flank. She swung it around her neck and tied it, making sure that it wouldn’t budge. I sighed in relief as I saw that I had guessed the length right. It was just long enough to be easy to wrap around and secure, but not long enough to get in the way.
“Fluttershy, it’s perfect! I’ll always be able ta keep warm when I’m working in the orchards an’ it’s soft enough I won’t have ta worry about it being too irritatin’.” She spun around in the firelight, looking down at her scarf as it dully reflected the flickering flames.
I gave another happy squeak and rolled over to where she was, carefully dodging the hot chocolate that had ceased steaming. I stopped right next to her, looking up at her in happiness. My mane was spread out in a halo around my head and my belly exposed to the warming flames. Even if I wasn't cold anymore, they were still pleasant. Applejack glanced down at me, smiling at my expression.
“Ya know, if a belly rub is what ya really wanted, ya could've just asked.”
The prospect of a belly rub from her was tempting, but I passed on it. “Oh, I wouldn't feel right asking you for that. Besides, I'm really ticklish.”
She raised a single eyebrow as a gleam appeared in her eye. “Well I had always been taught that some good ole physical exertion can get ya warm pretty dang quick.”
Before I could react, she dove down and started to tickle my belly. I let loose a peal of laughter, rolling across the floor. Applejack joined me on the floor a few moments later, laying on her side next to me with the fire behind us.
“Ya know, it’s nice havin’ someone to spend Hearth’s Warming Eve with. With Applebloom out with the other Crusaders and Big Mac over at Cheerilee’s, it was just Granny an’ I here. And she went to bed two hours ago.”
“It definitely is better than spending another holiday night with my animals.” We both shared a little laugh at that. Mine was interrupted by a big yawn, my jaws stretched wide in sleepiness. I rubbed an eye with a hoof to try and wake myself up a little more, but it was no use. The cold had taken a toll on my energy and it would take more than some hot chocolate to restore it.
“Gettin’ a lil sleepy there?” I nodded, the side of my head brushing against the soft rug on the floor. In response, Applejack scooted over to me and rolled onto her back. “If ya wanna use me as a pillow, I don’t mind.”
I felt a little bit of heat creep into my cheeks, but the idea did seem rather nice. But I didn’t want to impose too much. “Oh no, I couldn’t do that.”
“Come on ‘Shy, ya’ve had a pretty exhausting trip here. I’ll make sure you’re fine.”
“Well, if you insist...” I turned my body slightly so that I could lay my head on her chest, making a shallow angle where our bodies met on the rug. It certainly did feel nice, having my head resting on her soft fur. It wasn't coarse like one would expect of a workpony; instead, it was more like the coat of a fox.
I could feel her heartbeat against my head as well, pulsing strongly with each beat. It was deeper than I expected it to be, almost seeming like a bear's. The fire crackled behind us, but her heart made a sound more soothing than that, constant and calming. I looked up at my friend through half-lidded eyes, a smile easily visible on my face.
“Thank you for everything today Applejack.” She placed a gentle hoof over my head in response, gently running it through my mane and over my head. It was a relaxing feeling, and one that lured me even more to sleep.
She might have responded verbally, but it was too late for me to hear it. I had already drifted off to sleep, held safely in the warm and tender embrace of the pony I knew would always look out for me.
Author's Note
I hope you all enjoyed this :)
Calescent: Growing in warmth. I had to look it up too :P
